


Time to Take Action

by FlyingFreeYT, innocent_until_proven_geeky, LilRexsoka



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: Rebels, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Collaboration, Fives' death, Fix-It, OC fanfic, Qui-Gon Jinn's death, Star Wars - Freeform, Star Wars Fix-It, Star Wars saved, TCW, The Clone Wars - Freeform, Time Travel fanfic, multi-chapter fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-31
Updated: 2020-05-27
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:20:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23412247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlyingFreeYT/pseuds/FlyingFreeYT, https://archiveofourown.org/users/innocent_until_proven_geeky/pseuds/innocent_until_proven_geeky, https://archiveofourown.org/users/LilRexsoka/pseuds/LilRexsoka
Summary: This Fanfic will be a huge collaboration of Clone War's and Star Wars fans. Inspired by a MAP on youtube, this will be a collection of OC's travelling through time and fixing the dark moments of Star Wars. (Deaths, betrayals and more) A little light among all this dark!
Kudos: 12





	1. Slick's Betrayel

**Author's Note:**

> Slick's betrayal- Done by Selena (LilRexsoka) and her OC, Lor'nai Azila.

Lor’nai shot to a sitting position, his eyes rapidly shifting to a deep brown to fight against the bright, ethereal light that had pulled him out of sleep. Adjusting to the brightness only increased his confusion and wild fear that made his heart flip. His mind tingled with apprehension as he studied the swirling hole of blue that had opened up in the tight quarters of the Jedi Temple. 

The padawan clambered to his feet, pushing the sheets off of his lap. Backing away from the mass of energy only brought him back against the far wall as he stared into the twirling depths. The energy pulsing off of the anomaly was nothing he had felt before, something deep, rich and ancient. At the same time, voices echoed off of it, slow and serpent-like. _Come. In. Lor’nai. Save. Save._

He had never heard of any stories from his Jedi masters quite like this. Perhaps it was some force spirit summoning him into another realm. _No, that sounds ridiculous! I’m not a youngling! This is just a dream!_

Though he tried to reinforce that idea, deep inside, he knew it was not true. So, holding his breath, the hybrid boy inched forward. Lifting his arm slowly, carefully, he brushed his fingers against the heaving mass of light. It tingled his pale blue skin, accompanied by a pulling, like sticking your hand in a rushing river. Enforced by the notion that it caused no pain, Lor’nai took several steps and pushed himself into the light. 

The padawan emerged in a darkly lit corridor, one he did not recognize. The drag, gray metal walls reminded him of the hallways of the star cruisers, but he could not pinpoint where he had ended up. _So it’s a portal of some sort. But why would it take me here? What is this place?_

Everything had been eerily quiet before Lor’nai’s ears picked up the scraping stamp of footsteps. Quickly, leaving the energy doorway behind, the padawan slipped behind one of the support beams, suddenly thankful for his skinny frame. 

The footsteps came closer, not too heavy, but enough so that Lor’nai could tell they were wearing boots. Reaching out through the force, he found himself searching hopelessly. Where ever he was, the force was clouded like a rainy afternoon on Coruscant. The panic that flared up all along his tendons was only heightened when he saw the approaching being. A clone. 

This particular clone was not one he recognized. The plain white armour he wore was a design Lor’nai had seen only once, years ago; his father had used a similar style, which made him doubt if he was still in the present, despite all his beliefs. _Why is he using the Gen 1 armour? Those were switched out eight years ago._

The clone edged down the corridor, sending sharp glances down both ends as if making sure he was alone. Hesitantly, the trooper shifted to the side and pressed his back against the durasteel wall. He unclipped a holopuck from his belt and turned it on. A hologram of a strange woman appeared, someone with a smooth, shaved head and beady, dark eyes. “Ah, Slick. You have answered my message.” 

The clone, apparently nicknamed Slick, dipped his head, shadowed eyes reflecting the image of the strange woman. “Ventress. What are your requirements?” 

The woman called Ventress choked out a ragged laugh. “You know what I want, clone. Information.” She tilted her head keenly for a moment. “I will pay you well for your help.” 

Slick hesitated, eyes tilting toward the ceiling in thought. “No. I don’t need payment. The only thing the Separatists can offer me is my freedom.” Lor’nai ignored his cramping limbs and stifled a gasp. _The Separatists… this must be why Slick has Gen 1 armour. I am in the past. This is during the Clone War!_

The woman called Ventress rolled her eyes. “Clones. Such strange creatures. Fine. You betray your Republic and I will guarantee your freedom.” With that, Slick disconnected and slipped the holopuck back into his belt. He rested his skull against the wall with a sigh before pushing off and starting back down the corridor, helmet replaced. 

Lor’nai shifted from his hiding spot, watching the clone depart. _Slick is planning to betray the Republic to the Separatists. I have to do something… but what?_ Somehow, despite all the warnings flaring in his mind, Lor’nai knew what to do. Launching himself forward, he sprinted after the traitor. 

The clone whipped around at the sound of the padawan’s swift footsteps. Lor’nai didn’t need to use the force to tell he was alarmed. “Hey, what are you doing here?” His voice was questioning and slightly guilty. 

“I heard what you were saying to that woman,” Lor’nai panted, hoping that the clone wouldn’t sprint at his accusation. Miraculously, the trooper took the defensive. 

“You don’t know anything, kid,” Slick scoffed, crossing his arms and tapping his blaster against his abdominal plates. “You shouldn’t be here. These are the wrong barracks. You do not have any assignments here, do you?” 

“That doesn’t matter,” Lor’nai protested. He tried remembering what his mother had taught him about using correct words and arguments to convince others. “You cannot betray the Republic! You are not just a traitor to the army, but a traitor to your brothers!” His words echoed around his own father’s situation of abandonment and desertion. 

Slick was still and silent for a horrible stretch of time. Finally, he answered, his voice taut. “They are not my brothers.” 

Almost desperately, Lor’nai pushed on, knowing his voice was growing higher with panic. “You can’t betray anyone! My father was a clone. He turned away from the Republic and his brothers. He was a deserter. But he wasn’t a traitor. He had a reason to leave, so he stayed behind with my mother!” 

Slick scoffed again, pushing forward to stand over the padawan. “You don’t understand. You can’t just leave the Republic! It’s impossible!” 

Lor’nai gritted his teeth with a flash of bravery. “No! You are wrong! My father took the chance and left! No one came looking for him.” _No one could remember where they had left him._

The clone shook his head slowly. “What are you saying? I should just walk away during a mission? And never return?” 

The hybrid boy nodded excitedly. “I’ve seen it before. It is the right choice, not betraying everything you fight for just to leave.” 

Slick pulled off his bucket, his eyes blazing. “And why would you be helping me, hybrid? You’ll likely just turn me in after I leave.” His distrust was evident in every feature on his face, a thin sheen of sweat apparent on his forehead. His finger trembled on the trigger of his blaster. 

The padawan pushed away the twist of fear in his gut and lifted his arms disarmingly. “Why would I give you up when you are in the situation my own father was in?” 

Slick was quiet, his eyes flicking around the corridor before he eased his finger off the trigger. “Right.” A small smile twisted the corners of his lips, easing Lor’nai into a relieved smile. “You are a strange kid. I highly doubt your father was a clone, but I can see your intentions.” 

_I must look eighteen, and the clones are only around eleven during the clone war,_ Lor’nai realized. A sick twist of amusement tickled his mind. _Because of our rapid ageing, I am older than my father in this time._ Another realization, _I could see my father again._

“Well, thanks. I will take your word.” Slick patted the padawan on the shoulder. “I should be going, and I bet you have your own business to take care of.” The clone stuck the bucket back over his face, saluted briefly, and turned back down the corridor. 

A burning flare of accomplishment raced through Lor’nai’s muscles as the clone disappeared. _I did it. For some reason, the force wanted me to meet him here and stop his plans._

He trusted in the Force to lead him to situations that would benefit the future, and hopefully not change it forever. _Maybe my timeline will not have changed, but I gave this one a chance._ Satisfied, the hybrid boy ventured back to the location of the portal he had came through with a strange story to tell.


	2. Qui-Gon Jinn's Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Qui-Gon Jinn's death, as solved by Hope (innocent_until_proven_geeky) and their OC, Pova.

Pova was doing homework when it happened. 

Doing homework, and wearing their earmuffs, because Obi and Cody were watching some sort of holocomedy in the front room and they always laughed so loudly. It was distracting on Pova’s best days and grating on their worst. 

The sound was loud enough that the earmuffs didn’t work. 

They looked up. The wall had opened in front of them, revealing a shimmering blue that reminded them vaguely of hyperspace. And hyperspace was always fun. They should ignore this--whatever it is. They should tell Obi and Cody. 

Or they could not. They weren’t typically rebellious, and it could be an adventure. Pova hadn’t been on an adventure since Obi had taken them to the Jedi Temple on Tython. So they probably wouldn’t get in trouble, unless they got hurt. 

It couldn’t be that dangerous, right? 

Pova went to their closet to grab their cloak, and, just for good measure, clipped their lightsaber to their belt. Then, with a determination they did not feel while doing homework, they stepped forward and into the shimmering blue light. 

From what they remembered, it felt quite a bit like jumping into hyperspace, the forces pushing and pulling on their body that, by nature, wanted to stay firmly where it was. However, it was more immediate than hyperspace; almost as soon as they were tugged into the portal, they were deposited at its other end. 

Pova didn’t recognize where they were. It didn’t remind them of anywhere on Tatooine, and their memories of Coruscant, though they spanned more of their life, were even vaguer than their memories of hyperspace. 

The only thing they could glean from their surroundings was that they must be in a reactor core of some kind. There was an entrance, opposite the core from where they stood, rayshielded, and beyond the shields-- 

Was that Obi? 

Jedi weren’t allowed much in the way of possessions, so Obi really only had one or two holoimages of himself as a Padawan, but his Force signature was unmistakable. After five years of living with him, spending a good portion of that time calling him “papa” to his face, Pova knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that that was Obi. 

They knew this story. 

“What the _kriff_ am I doing here?” they muttered, flinching at the word. Obi would never let them get away with swearing, but the situation merited something. The sound of lightsabers clashing grabbed their attention. 

They knew this story. “Qui-Gon.” 

Maul and Qui-Gon seemed evenly matched, but Pova… Pova wasn’t just going to stand here. They would not let this happen again. They had no idea what was happening--maybe they had fallen asleep at their desk and it was a vivid dream, maybe this was some sort of time travel, maybe it was an alternate universe, they didn’t know, but they were not going to stand by and watch Qui-Gon die in his Padawan’s arms at the hands of this…. 

_Oh, sithspit._

They ran around the edge of the reactor core, trying to get behind Qui-Gon because that way was closer. It was going to happen any second now. 

The moment Pova thought that, Maul hit Qui-Gon neatly with the hilt of his double-bladed saber. Qui-Gon stumbled backward, off-balance. 

Pova leaped up and over him, using the Force just as Obi had taught. They ignited their lightsaber. 

They parried Maul’s blade away. It was clumsy, but it worked, and the addition of a fifteen-year-old with a lightsaber seemed to distract Maul enough that he didn’t try to go after the Master again. It gave Qui-Gon the time he needed to reorient himself, and then the rayshields lifted, and Maul was surrounded. 

“Get behind me, young one!” Qui-Gon ordered, recovering admirably. He flicked on his lightsaber, and Pova just watched, amazed, as Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon defeated the Sith Lord. They turned their gaze away when Maul’s head was separated from the rest of him, just in time to see the portal open up again. They sighed. They had really wanted to get to know Qui-Gon. _Another time, then._

And back into the shimmering light they went.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there, Reader! If you are interested in helping us create this Collaboration Fanfic, message me @lilrexsoka on Tumblr or comment below to be introduced to the parts. Also, don't forget to check out the lovely writers who are helping me create this piece of art. I hope you will enjoy it!


	3. Five's Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five's Death was devastating for us and Rex- but what if it never had happened?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Five's death- as solved by Rowan- FlyingFreeYt (AO3) and flyingfreeyt (Tumblr) and their OC, Coda

Coda suppressed a yelp at the blinding light suddenly filling their quarters. Grasping the lightsaber resting on his hip, Coda slowly opened their good eye. Coda wasn’t sure what to think of the swirling mass of energy displayed in front of their door that led to the hallways of the _Constellation._

Waves of _help, save, fear_ came out of the mass of energy, and Coda couldn’t help but be curious about it. It was powerful; it almost felt like Coda was getting sucked in. They hesitantly held their arm out to it. 

Bad idea. 

Getting sucked in, Coda felt like they were being grabbed and dragged through a wind storm, and Coda wouldn’t be surprised if they were screaming at one point. They landed on a hard concrete surface, their body aching and they let out a groan. 

“Please sir! You have to believe me!” Coda felt their body run cold. That was Fives’ voice and Fives is dead- 

No. They were in the warehouse, Rex and Skywalker in the ray shield. The Coruscant Guard was just outside the door, being manipulated by chips- 

Fox’s chip was activated, it wasn’t Fox outside the door, it was CC-1010. 

And CC-1010 was going to shoot Fives any second now. 

Coda struggled to gather their thoughts as their vision cleared. They had landed behind some crates, and Coda could get a clear view of the scene unravelling in front of them. Skywalker looked impatient and Rex looked scared. Fives was hysterical. 

When this happened last time, Coda had come to the warehouse late and hadn't been in a ray shield. They could’ve saved Fives last time. Here was the chance to fix that mistake. 

Time Travel was something that gave Coda a headache thinking about, but Coda wasn’t going to focus on that right now. Whether or not this would change anything in their timeline was unimportant. They had a chance to save their friend. 

Commander Fox- no, CC-1010 and the Coruscant Guard burst in; there was yelling; Fives grabbed Rex’s blaster off the crate- 

With help from the force, Coda changed the mode on Fox’s blaster, switching it to stun. He shot a stun bolt at Fives. He went down. 

He went down but he was alive; that was all that mattered right now. Coda let out a sigh of relief, sinking back against the crates they were hiding behind. A flash of light filled their vision, and it was painful for a moment and then- 

They were back in their quarters. On their cruiser travelling through Hyperspace to some Outer Rim planet. Coda wondered if that had been real, or maybe if it was some dream? Had it affected their timeline? 

Coda’s comm beeped, and they answered it without looking at the caller’s ID, “Falcin.” 

“Hey, Coda.” Wolffe. 

"What do you need?” they asked, a playful tone directed at their friend. 

“Nothing. The boys and I were wonderin’ if ya wanted to join us for a game of Sabacc in the Commander Barracks on Coruscant when you get back from your mission?” 

Coda thought for a moment; if all went to plan, they would be on Coruscant within 5 days, “I don’t see why not. Who else is gonna be there?” 

“Oh just me, Fox, Thorn, Cody, Bly, Rex and his ARC Trooper Fives. Ponds and Gree might join us if they’re on planet-'' Coda stopped listening. They did it. Fives was alive and it didn’t completely fuck up their timeline. 

“Yeah, I’ll be there.” 

“Alright, don’t die out there.” 

“I can make no promises.”


	4. Din Djarn's injuries by Moff Gideon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A job takes a bounty hunter deeper into trouble and farther into time to stop the assault on a fellow Mandalorian.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Moff Gideon's attack on Din Djarn is halted by Maddie (Maddie_doodles2) and her OC Servus

Servus was overlooking the busy hub beneath the bridge he was sitting on with his sister, Patro, the both of them peacefully eating with each other. 

Servus and Patro were unusually close for siblings. The two Mandalorians were bounty hunters- living off of the money they both earned through bounty hunting. They even did every job together- but today was certainly a big change for both of them. 

"I got a new job," Servus said out of the blue, focusing his green gaze on his sister. 

Patro ruffled her wavy, medium-length, dark brown and smiled earnestly at her brother. "Great. Where's our puck?" she asked, grabbing her gloves from underneath her magenta helmet, which was resting on a dusty, smooth piece of debris. 

"No, Patro. I mean I'm going on a mission," Servus responded rather seriously, keeping his tone level and calm. "The job is confusing and rather unusual, but the reward will probably cover our food for an entire year." 

For a moment, his sister was silent. She merely gazed off into the distance, fumbling with her gloves before she blindly slipped them onto her exposed hands. Servus could tell she was processing this- the two hadn't been separated in nearly ten years, and it seemed Patro didn't want to break this streak. 

However, she did manage to look Servus in the eyes and say something in response. "What's the job?" she asked, her voice rather hoarse. 

"There's a way that I can go back in time and stop something from happening. In our case, I have to kill a man called Moff Gideon before he explodes an E-Web and fatally wounds a Mandalorian called Din Djarin," h explained, almost reeling backwards at the deep confusion and concern that crossed onto his sister's face. 

"You have to be kidding me! There's no way in the galaxy that my brother can do the impossible and travel back in time.. and to a timeline that I don't even think exists," she shouted, her warm brown eyes stretching wide. 

Servus sighed and slid on his green and purple helmet. His sister didn't understand that he was trying to do what was best for the both of them; no matter how absurd the mission may be, he'd go great lengths to help her out. 

"I'll be back with our money. You'll see." He hugged Patro and then pressed a button on one of his gauntlets that activated his jetpack. After that, he was going to go head-first into a place where he had to save someone he never even heard of. But that didn't matter. Money was money. 

《☆•☆•☆》 

Nevaro 

Servus tumbled out of a portal and found himself in the middle of a battle. Around him it was chaos- Stormtroopers viciously firing their blasters (to no avail; Servus noticed that they were terrible at aiming), and in the middle of this were four people that stood out. 

An IG unit was dodging blows and fighting the Stormtroopers off like it was no big deal, a muscular woman was firing from inside the cantina, there was an older man with a determined expression and... 

Din Djarin. Servus could tell it was him by the glittering Beskar steel armour and the Mandalorian helmet. He fought with brute force and rather boldly, a little too bold for Servus's taste, using advanced combat moves against Stormtroopers who were mainly trained to punch and hold a blaster. 

For a minute, Servus was mesmerized, hoping that one day he could fight that great and still look good doing it (he believed that he was a total mess). But then his objective crossed his mind, and he rose shakily from the ground to look for Moff Gideon. 

As his client described Moff Gideon, he was a tall, cold and calculating man who knew too much about his victims. Servus was left in a panic as he desperately tried to look through the chaos to try to find his victim. It seemed almost impossible to find Moff in the midst of this war zone. 

Servus ducked to avoid a shot from a blaster, anger and desperation rising beneath him as he continued to search. And then he saw Moff Gideon, only standing twenty feet away from where Din Djarin was using the E-Web against his enemies; in Moff's hand was a blaster, the man's fingers curled tightly around the trigger. 

Servus rolled onto his side and leaned down to hide behind a broken piece of rubble. He had a clear shot- he could shoot Moff and get this thing over with. He took his blaster out of its holster and aimed it at the back of Moff Gideon's head. 

He studied the scenario that was playing out in front of him. Din Djarin turned around, a sense of defiance and bravery radiating off of him. Servus' heart pounded as his gaze matched Djarin's; he could feel the drastic change of emotion, from boldness to terror as The Mandalorian noticed where the blaster was pointed, at the E-Web. 

Before Moff could even pull the trigger and fire at the E-Web, Servus pulled it first, making sure his blaster was aimed at the perfect spot on the back of his victim's head. Moff Gideon collapsed upon impact, falling to the ground with a loud thud. There was a hushed silence once the leader of this whole disaster fell to the floor. The battle had stopped, as if Nevaro had entered a stage of a temporary time freeze. 

Although Servus couldn't see it, he could tell Din was confused at what just happened. And so was everyone else. The Stormtroopers couldn't tell whether or not they were supposed to retreat, or stick to their now dead leader's orders and fight. Servus didn't want to stick around and find out; he had to collect his well-deserved bounty. 

From what he heard, apparently Din had an adoptive son. Servus silently hoped that, in time, everything went well for Din Djarin. The portal reopened, and Servus dove into it as soon as he felt like he was done.


	5. Fives' Conspiracy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What if Fives succeeded in getting the tumour to the Jedi Temple?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fives' conspiracy was boosted by Lilrexsoka's OC, Kailo Santi.

Kailo hadn’t quite understood Lor’nai’s strange description of his experiences a few nights before. She had advised him to keep his ‘dream’ to himself, as she was not sure anyone would believe him. She was not sure she even took his accounts of that night seriously until she found herself staring at a glowing pool of energy instead of the dark, comforting meditation room nearest the medical wing.

The Twi’lek was pulled back to his description; a whirling circle of power, much like the feeling the Jedi temples gave off during the journey to retrieve their kyber crystals. Ancient, mysterious and important. Her scholar mind kicked in, searching the depths of her memory on anything she could remember from her teachings that could explain the phenomenon. _I am not tired, and I am most certainly not sleeping._

Her deductions told her that Lor’nai had not been lying; this portal was truly real and right in front of her. _Why does Lor’nai always attract the strangest things?_

From both the aura coming from the oval of energy hovering in the middle of the room, glowing like a lightsaber in the dark and the explanation from her friend, Kailo knew what she had to do. _Lor’nai went through there? Why would he ever decide to do that?_

Groaning inwardly at the hybrid’s sudden curiosity, Kailo leaned down to drop the holopad she had been carrying and reached out to brush her fingers against the flowing light. The portal moved like flowing fog around her outstretched digit, slightly chilling yet warm at the same time. Her lekku trembled nervously as she reached further in, the sleeve of her robe fluttering as if trapped in a windstorm.

Her careful steps brought her further into the pulsing circle until most of her arm was swallowed. With a deep inhale of air, the Twi’lek pushed her body entirely into the dancing energy. Her breath stuck in her throat before the light changed and her body dropped into the new pressure of a planet that was not Coruscant.

Kailo fluttered her eyes open to find herself in a darkened room. The whole scene before her was filled with devices that seemed to be medical supplies, which was confirmed by the familiar smell of antiseptics. Yet, she did not recognize anything until she turned around to find a man sitting alone on a medical table, his head bowed. _A clone? Where am I?_

The clone was surrounded by flashing blue screens that contained both an unfamiliar dialect and Aurebesh, and several wandering medical droids who did not seem to be doing anything in particular. The clone's armour had been replaced with red fatigues and he held himself as if he were… sad.

Kailo hesitated, debating her actions. She had no idea where she was, or why she had ended up in this place. Lor’nai had explained that he was sure he had been put into the barracks during the clone war to stop a clone traitor from betraying his brothers; did this portal want Kailo to stop this clone from doing something terrible? “Hello.”

The clone turned around at her soft call, startled. His eyes took in the newcomer, the dull depths suddenly flooding with confusion. “You’re a Jedi,” he murmured, flicking his gaze around the room. “Where did you come from?”

“That does not matter,” Kailo objected, shaking her head. She could not explain to the clone how she had suddenly appeared at that moment; she needed to know what she had to prevent him from doing. “Who are you, trooper, and what are you doing here?”

“I’m Arc Trooper Five-Five-Five-Five. They call me Fives.” The clone ducked his head again, rubbing the back of his neck. “I came here with my friend, a trooper called Tup when something… went wrong.” Fives sighed dejectedly. “He died. I am waiting here for Shaak Ti to tell me what will happen next.”

Kailo’s heart wrenched at his pained expression. Her mind was temporarily distracted by his grief before she realized what he had said. _Master Ti… this is not the Temple, so where am I?_

“Do you know when she will return?” the clone asked hopefully. “It’s been a while and I haven’t heard anything.”

Kailo shook her head again, pacing around the medical table to try and puzzle out the language that was on the medical screens. “I’m sorry. I don’t.” _Maybe if Master Ti returns, I can explain who I am. Then maybe she can help me figure out what I should be doing here._ Kailo did not know the Togruta Jedi very well, but she knew the Council member would still recognize her. _But if she knows I am not supposed to be here, wherever this is, I could get into trouble._

“So, if you don’t mind me asking, what are you doing on Kamino?” Fives asked carefully, twisting his waist to keep his eyes trained on the Padawan.

 _Kamino? Why is this clone back on Kamino, not on Nirthis, or at least Coruscant? The Kaminoans did not want anything to do with the clones after the Clone War._ A thought occurred to her. _Maybe this is not in the present. Maybe I am in the past, during the Clone War!_ “I am- I was brought here to study medicine with the Kaminoans.” _I hope that was a believable excuse._

“Ah,” Fives sighed. “The Kaminoans. Not very… homely, are they?”

Kailo had never met a Kaminoan. She had studied them but had never gotten the chance to ever converse with one. _Of course, Kaminoan is the one language I never bothered to try and learn._ “I guess not.”

At that moment, Kailo picked up the faint sound of footsteps down the hall. She strained with her senses but realized at that moment that the Force had disappeared. She could no longer feel the comforting energy around her. She felt naked, stripped away from the constant stream of life she usually felt surrounding her. Panic flared in her chest and she scanned the room, searching for a place to escape. _Think, Kailo!_

“Are you okay?” The clone pondered, watching her with a bemused expression.

Kailo glanced back at him, her heart pounding. She had only one chance to save her position. “This will sound very strange, but I don’t belong here. Will you help me?” Her breath caught in her throat as she tried to make out the flash in Fives’ brown eyes.

The clone chuckled, to her surprise. “That’s what I thought. Now, what do you need?” He shot her a lopsided grin.

The Twi’lek let out her breath. “Thank you, Fives. But all I need is a place to hide.”

The clone gazed at her curiously for a moment before pointing to the back corner of the room. “Over there. There should be a sliding screen that will hide you if they come inside.”

Kailo whispered her thanks before slipping to the corner he had pointed to. Indeed, there was a sliding screen inside the wall that could hide a patient when they needed to use the refresher. The Padawan pulled it out enough so she could press her back against it and be hidden from anyone who would enter the room.

Eventually, the footsteps grew louder and approached the door. With a soft scraping sound, a group of people entered. It was hard for Kailo to tell, but she thought she could hear the soft thuds of Kaminoan feet and the sharper pad of Jedi slippers.

“General,” Fives greeted the newcomers. “What did the Chancellor say?”

Kailo was certain that the General he was referring to was Master Ti, even if she was still confused as to why the Togruta Council member was on the ocean planet. She also had questions as to why this clone was back on Kamino, and why his friend had been taken here.

Something clicked in her mind when she thought of the Chancellor. _Didn’t that clone Medic that ended the war mention someone named Fives? Is this the same clone that was responsible for those first investigations? Did that portal take me back to the Clone War?_ This revelation meant that the Chancellor Fives spoke of was not the young Lyella Dontui but in fact the secret Sith Lord, Sheev Palpatine.

“Supreme Chancellor Palpatine wants the tumour and all of the intel gathered sent to the Grand Republic Medical Facility on Coruscant.” That accented voice was most certainly Shaak Ti’s, and her words only confirmed Kailo’s suspicions. _Why did the portal send me here?_

“So then I will be going to Coruscant as well?” Fives asked inquisitively. He sounded almost desperate as if he wanted to stay with whatever intel was being sent back to the former Chancellor.

A new voice joined in. “You were not part of the Chancellor’s request.” Kailo could guess that this new person was a Kaminoan from the cool, smooth speech.

“I am sorry, Fives,” Shaak Ti told the clone, her tone tinged with regret. “But this is a matter best left to the medical professionals.”

Kailo had never been the inquisitive type, but the conversations that were taking place were growing her suspicions. She had done several studies on the history of the Clone War, specifically on the end of it, so she could fit some pieces in. The clone, Fives, had been part of a series of investigations on the mind chips implanted in each clone during the War. The tumour that Master Ti had referred to made her guess that it was actually the chip. The investigation had begun after this ‘tumour’ had supposedly killed a clone, one that Kailo remembered was Fives’ friend, Tup. _The Kaminoans must have known what these chips could do. They had to have been hiding something. Maybe the portal wanted me to help uncover the truth, like how Lor’nai’s journey brought him to stop a traitor._

Cautiously, the Twi’lek stuck her head around the screen, hoping the shadows would be enough to conceal her. Now she could see Master Ti, Fives and the Kaminoan that was with them, tall and imposing.

“There is still so much we do not know,” Shaak Ti murmured, holding up a thin slide with an organic chip shielded inside. _The mind chip._

Fives’ face was downcast as he watched the Jedi Master turn and place the chip carefully into an awaiting case. She shut the lid and turned back to the Kaminoan as the pale creature began to speak.

“Perhaps we would know more if this clone had not taken matters into his own hands,” the long-necked creature hissed scathingly.

Fives leaned forward and waved an accusing finger. “Listen! I was trying to save my friend!” His voice was filled with anger and despair. Kailo could not help but feel sorry for him and his situation, despite not quite understanding the context.

“And yet perhaps,” the Kaminoan answered coolly, “By removing this tumour, it was you who killed him.” She waved her arm as she spoke as if insinuating her statement held truth.

The clone’s frown deepened and he pulled himself to his feet, facing the Kaminoan bravely. “What do you care? You were going to kill him anyway, and dissect him, too.” His fists clenched, the tan skin turning white. “He’s a soldier. He deserves better!”

“Stand down, Fives!” Shaak Ti ordered. She turned to the Kaminoan. “Doctor, there is no proof of your claim."

Fives sank back down onto the table, his head dipped low in the same position Kailo had first found him in.

“I want this specimen and all the data prepared for transit to the Jedi Temple,” Master Ti directed, picking up the case with the chip from the table and transferring it into the waiting arms of one of the medical droids. _Yes! The Jedi! The Chancellor would only destroy the evidence!_

The Kaminoan ducked her head incredulously. “The Chancellor said that the tumour and data were to be sent directly to the Medical Facility on Coruscant, not the Jedi Temple.”

“And it will get there,” the Togruta Master answered easily, pacing over to the opposite side of the room where Fives was still sitting dejectedly. “But after the Jedi have run an analysis on it first.”

The Doctor followed her. “I protest. I must personally deliver this tumour to the Chancellor as ordered.”

Shaak Ti shook her head. “You can protest all you want. My word is final.”

The Kaminoan doctor reluctantly dipped her head again. Kailo bit her lip anxiously. _Everything seems to be going well. What am I going to have to do?_

The door to the room slid open; in walked a very tall Kaminoan with an escort of two clones. Shaak Ti turned to Fives and gently laid a hand on his shoulder. “You have one more physical to pass. If you are cleared, you will be sent back to the Five-Oh-First.”

The Togruta Jedi stepped aside and gestured to the second Kaminoan and his two guards. Fives slowly stood and joined them. He turned at the last moment, his eyes dark. “Thank you, General.”

“It will be good to put this entire incident behind you, trooper," Shaak Ti told him warmly.

“I agree,” the Doctor purred. Fives shot her another angry glare.

As the stare down occurred, Kailo noticed the Kaminoan make a hand gesture to the medical droid behind the Jedi Master’s back. Before anyone noticed, the droid quickly placed the case with the ‘tumour’ back onto the table and picked up a second case, this one without the evidence. Kailo squinted. _She did that on purpose. She wants to give the wrong evidence to the temple._

If Fives had seen the switch, he did not comment on it. He begrudgingly followed the two clone escorts and the Kaminoans outside, only glancing at Kailo’s hiding place momentarily. Before long, the room was empty and she was left in the dark.

Kailo waited until she was sure the footsteps had faded, then snuck out into the main room. Just to ensure her eyes had not been playing tricks on her, she opened the remaining case on the table.

The chip was still inside. _That Kaminoan sabotaged Shaak Ti. This must be how the clones had discovered the truth and not the Jedi._ Her mind raced; she knew she had to reveal the truth and get the chip to Shaak Ti and the council. _But how? I don’t want to get myself into trouble._

Her plan merely took seconds to come up with; she felt her heart beat rapidly in her chest and her palms begin to sweat, but she knew what she had to do. She did not want to mess with the future, but she had an idea.

Carefully, the Twi’lek glanced out of the room. She could see both Shaak Ti with the Doctor and Fives with the clone escorts down the separate ends of the hall. Taking a deep breath and calling to the mysteriously disappeared Force, she trudged forward away from the room where she had come from.

“Master Ti.” Kailo stopped behind the Jedi General. She tried to estimate how old she would have been at this point; around the age of eight. She had not become Master Kenobi’s Padawan until she had turned thirteen, so she doubted that the Togruta Master would recognize her.

Shaak Ti turned around, her lavender eyes widening. She examined the Twi’lek before her, with the Jedi robes and lightsaber. “Who are you-”

“I think you took the wrong case,” Kailo blurted in a rush, holding up the correct case with the mind chip.

The Kaminoan Doctor rushed in quickly, almost panicked. “No, that is not right. Master Ti handed off the case herself.” Her dark eyes bore into Kailo. “What are you doing here?”

“I don’t recognize you,” the Togruta mused, clearly not as startled as the Doctor. “Who is your Master? Why was I not notified of your arrival?”

Kailo shook her head quickly. “That is unimportant right now. You have the wrong case.” She pushed to stray away from her appearance and to the topic of the mishap.

Shaak Ti shot a glance at the Kaminoan, whose eyes seemed to be burning. The Jedi Master took the second case from Kailo and carefully opened it. As the Padawan had told her, the chip had been switched.

“It was the droid’s mistake,” the Doctor stated. Kailo knew that she was not telling the truth, but she could not muster the courage to state that fact.

Just then, a clamour from behind Kailo prompted her to whip around, alarmed. The clone, Fives, seemed to be pushing away from his escorts; in seconds, he was throwing aside Kaminoans and dodging droids to sprint toward the Jedi General.

“I knew it!” the clone cheered as he reached them, panting. “Nala Se switched the cases! On purpose!”

“Fives, what is the meaning of this?” Shaak Ti asked with a frown.

The clone paused to catch his breath before helplessly begging to the Jedi. “General, you have to believe me. I saw the Doctor switch them.” He glanced at Kailo. “And she did too.”

The Togruta Master stared between the clone and the Twi’lek for a terrible while. Finally, she turned expectantly to the Kaminoan. “What do you have to say in your defence, Doctor?”

As the Kaminoan frantically tried to explain herself, Kailo noticed uneasily that the clone escorts had recovered and several more were inching forward behind Fives, their guns raised in alarm. “Ayzee three!” Fives suddenly shouted, startling the Twi’lek and the escorts. The clone moved to greet a group of droids, which was fronted by a small medical droid.

“Hello, ARC Trooper Five-z,” the droid chirped. “I regret that we were unable to heal your friend. Are you on your way to be reprogrammed as well?”

Fives frowned, his face suddenly darkening. “No, Ayzee, I’m going back to the front.”

“That is not what I heard,” the unassuming droid answered. “I heard your mind was going to be wiped and that you would be reassigned here and placed on sanitation detail.” The droid paused as Fives’ frown grew deeper. “We can still be friends, assuming we both remember each other after our memories have been erased.”

 _I can’t let that happen,_ Kailo realized. _Fives does not deserve to be reconditioned like a droid._ She turned her gaze across the people in the room. Shaak Ti appeared mildly surprised, while the Kaminaons did not seem guilty in the slightest. Fives took a step back from the medical droid, prompting the clone escorts to close in. The clone glanced up for a moment to fix Kailo with a piercing stare before he smirked and winked.

The Twi’lek turned to the Jedi Master, knowingly. “Oh, Master Ti. You can’t let them do that to this trooper! He deserves to return to his brothers!”

Shaak Ti shook her head, her mouth turning down at the corners. “I never told anybody that this clone should have his memory wiped. Who gave you this order?”

“This clone has caused far too much trouble for all this to be forgotten,” Nala Se oozed. “His independence and curiosity will infect the men of his company and will cause problems for the Jedi.”

Shaak Ti was still shaking her head slowly. “No, that is not right. This clone has only done his duty and what he thought was right.” The Togruta turned calmly toward the Doctor. “Nala Se, I do think I will speak with the Prime Minister about your recent actions.”

The Kaminaon stared down at the Jedi Master eerily. She kept her mouth shut.

The Togruta returned to Fives’ side. “I think it would be better if you would accompany me with the tumour to the Jedi Temple.”

“Yes, thank you, General,” Fives answered eagerly, much to the obvious disgust of the Kaminoans.

Kailo was sure now that nothing would go wrong. Shaak Ti was a capable Jedi Master and would ensure that both the tumour and the clone would remain safe. While Shaak Ti directed the Kaminoans to stay behind and the clone escorts to return to their stations, the Twi’lek began to back away. Lor’nai had explained that his portal had opened up again when his task had been completed; Kailo inched away until she reached the room that Fives had been waiting in.

Just as she turned to enter, the Padawan glanced back at the retreating Jedi Master and clone. Shaak Ti seemed to have forgotten her appearance, but Fives glanced back at her. He dipped his head briefly before Kailo ducked into the darkened room, which had been lit up with the pale light of the portal that would bring her back to her time. _He may never understand where I had come from or why I had helped him, but I hope this changes Fives' future for good._


End file.
